


Two Souls

by Nariva



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Complete, Emotional Manipulation, Gen, Grief/Mourning, I Just Really Wanted Harrow To Live, King Harrow Lives, Trapped, soul swap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-07-12 11:21:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,223
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15994148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nariva/pseuds/Nariva
Summary: This was for the good of the kingdom, Viren told himself as he stroked Harrow's feathers. The King would come to see things his way, eventually.





	1. Choice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So was it just me, or did the voiceover in the beginning of the first episode sound like Arcann from SWTOR?
> 
> *I looked it up on Wikipedia, it is him!

     Viren held the basket close, giving Harrow a cautious smile as he started forward.

     "You are my King," he began, passing him to descends the steps leading from the King's bed. "But you're also my friend."

     "Your friend," Harrow repeated, and Viren closed his eyes at the hesitant tone there. How had they drifted so far apart, that the man would _doubt_ him?

     " _Yes_ ," he stressed, lifting the lid to set it on the cabinet before him. The King's faithful bird cooed at it in curiosity, hopping forward to peck at the handle. Viren carefully lifted the soulfang serpent from its resting place, eyes locked on the bird as he continued to speak. "Right now, I do not come to you as my king." He paused, took a breath. "I think of you... as my brother." He heard Harrow sigh, long and hard, as he focused his magic. He had to get this just right, he _had to_.

     "I remember those days," the king said, his voice distant, muddled, as Viren whispered his magic to life. It hung before him, a purple, pulsing mist, and he _willed_ it to do as he wished. The magic snapped forward, encasing the bird's body as it bound its beak tightly shut. Plucking up the fallen bird, Viren cautiously held it close to the serpent, watching as twin tongues flickered out to taste the air. "We were inseparable," the King fondly reminisced, then gave a low chuckle, "my mother was always having to insist that you weren't also hers." The mage felt a small smile tug at his lips, fond of his memories of the former Queen, and then his attention snapped back to the present as the left head of the snake shot out. It sank its fangs into the dark bird, and Viren watched as its soul, a shimmering blueish light, disappeared down the snake's throat. The left head released its victim, swaying back to rejoin its right half as the mage carefully lay the soulless bird inside the basket. Summoning his magic once more, Viren coaxed the soulfang serpent up his wrist, the creature winding around his arm as the tongue of the right head flickered out again. Soon, he thought, setting the lid back on _._ Viren started back up the stairs, setting the basket down and clasping his hands behind his back as the King looked at him with a sad smile. "I'll always regret that I let us drift apart," the man quietly said, then gave a low chuckle. "'Always'," he repeated to himself, shaking his head, "I forgot..." Harrow looked up as Viren stopped before him, speaking once more as he met the mage's eyes. "Thank you, my friend- no," he paused, then gave a true smile, "my brother, for easing my final moments."

     "Anything for you, Harrow," Viren promised, reaching out to invite the man into a hug. Harrow rose from his seat, setting his sword aside as he too reached out, his expression soft with sad fondness. As they embraced, Harrow's eyes closing, he spoke again. "I made a mistake in the throne room."

     "And that was?" Harrow asked, lifting an eyebrow at him as he pulled back a touch.

     "Giving you a choice," the mage said, and the soulfang struck, sinking its fangs into the King's arm as he jerked at the bite. For a moment, the man looked at him in utter shock, then his eyes rolled back as the snake pulled his spirit into itself. The mage caught his body as it collapsed, straining to keep it from falling to the floor. The man shoved his king's body back into its chair, haphazardly arranging it as the serpent curled once more around his arm. Letting out the breath he'd been holding, Viren stood back and looked down at the snake as it watched him. It had done its job well, he thought, kneeling to retrieve the basket. He coaxed it back inside, careful not to jostle the bird within as he replaced the lid. Holding the basket close, Viren smiled down at it, running a hand over the braided handle. He would save Harrow from the assassins, even if he had to save him from himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honesty time- I was way more interested in Harrow and Viren than the actual main characters. After episode three, I actually watched all the castle/adult character scenes first, and then went back to watch the kids.


	2. No One Else

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harrow would eventually join him, Viren was certain of it.

     "You should have seen our people, Harrow," he said, "they stretched out for miles- thousands came to mourn your passing." The King let out a single squawk, surely meant to be a heated curse, and then pointedly walked on wobbling feet to the other side of the cage. Viren merely pulled the cage closer, smirking at the indignant second squawk that earned him. Watching his King slowly grow accustomed to Pip's body had been an unrivaled source of amusement for the mage, and he smiled as he opened the door of the cage. For all his attempts, Harrow still had yet to fly, and Viren scooped the bird up before making his way the window. He stroked the bird's ruffled feather, looking out at the city below. Distant lights flickered in the darkness, and Viren set Harrow on the ledge of the window as he looked down at the bird. Harrow scrabbled awkwardly on the stone for a second, slowly turning to carefully peer outside. "Our people are so much like you, Harrow," he told his king, and dark eyes fixed on his. "They'll mourn, weep for you and your sons, and become _stronger_. Men and women from all over the kingdoms will volunteer to train, to fight, and I will lead them against Xadia." Harrow gave a low, deep hiss at that, his wings going rigid as he sat lower on the ledge. Oh, Viren thought warmly, it was so _cute_ of him. "Don't worry, Harrow, I meant what I said before- you're like a brother to me, we'll march side by side." He smiled, "it'll be like the old days, us against the elves and dragons, like it should have always been." Harrow gave a shake of his small head, his feathers puffing out as he hissed again. "Don't be like that," Viren gently scolded him, "you know joining me is the only way you'll be able to reach the elves who killed your sons." Harrow's wings drooped at that, his feathers flattening back down as the bird turned from him to face the window. The "deaths" of his sons were a sore topic for the man, Viren could still recall the sharp, keening cries he'd given on hearing it. The mage carefully picked his king up, carrying him back to his cage. His words wouldn't be a lie for long- once Soren and Claudia found the boys, Harrow would truly have no one else but Viren. "I know it hurts," he quietly told the man as he placed him back inside the cage and shut the door, "but think about what I've said." Harrow didn't acknowledge him, instead moving to burrow deep into Pip's nest. He'd let him have his silence for now, Viren decided, stepping back from the cage as he closed the curtain around it. The mage yawned, rubbing at his eyes as he set about his nighttime routine. He had nothing to worry about. The King had always been stubborn, but Viren _would_ see this through to the end. When he conquered Xadia; took back humanity's rightful lands, Harrow would stand at his side.


End file.
